My partner said she wanted Hair Straighteners for her birthday, which is on the 24 December, which is why she’s called Carol, by the way, spookily. Anyway, I was very uninterested in buying her such a prosaic present, until a friend versed in the black arts of beauty told me that I should get her some GHD hair straighteners. “They are,” she said, “definitely the best (others are clearly nowhere near!)”.
And so I had a look on the web and she was right. Google was excited by GHD and when Google’s excited, I’m excited. I got to work finding the best version and the best deal. It turns out there’s a new model coming out next year, the Mark 4, but some people are already selling it in a gift set with a fancy bag which also has other things in it including Obedience Cream. Obviously a good Christmas present. Yesterday I knew less than nothing about the subject, today I have a strong opinion.
So then I thought, “never mind the extra expense, I’ll support my local shops and save myself the stress of waiting for a delivery.” I phoned Sally Hair & Beauty Supplies which is very nearby. Maybe I’m absurdly optimistic, maybe I should know better by now. The woman there denied that there was a new model coming out, she had never heard of a gift set, in fact she sounded irritated by my questions. “What subject could be more boring,” she seemed to be thinking, “than hair straighteners. Get a life.”
OK. I admit I’m a nerd. Maybe I do over-research every purchase, but I find it so disappointing that nearly every time I talk to anyone in a real-world shop they know less about what I’m buying than I do. Where’s the passion, the enthusiasm? Come on, local shopkeepers! We want to help you but you need to give at least one hoot about what you’re overcharging us for.
I totally disagree - there are some excellent local shops around this area: William Rose butchers has changed my life and my cooking habits; Beamish and McGlue organic grocers and deli has hand-produced cheeses from all over the UK and France; Tales on Half Moon Lane is the sort of magical children’s bookshop you can spend a whole afternoon in without noticing; The Crow on the Hill Bookseller in Crystal Palace is so much more than a bookshop - it’s a community for book-lovers and then there’s South London Decorators in West Norwood. My new year’s resolution is to spend more time and money in real local shops run by real local people and waste less time doing functional shopping in supermarkets and on websites.
Hey Carol, thanks for the thumbs up. Just to say re the Sasek banner, if you didn’t know, we import the books from the US and normally have them all in stock.
Jon, did you not consider the Andrew Collinge 11904-40 Professional Digital Ceramic Straightener? Or the Tresemme HP4648/27 Proceramic Breeze? Or the BaByliss 2085U Pro 230°C Straightener?
Stop it Giles, you perv.
Perhaps you caught her on a bad day. At least she didn’t ask you leave (or in this case hang up on you) whilst making the sign of the cross, which was what happened to me the last time I tried to support a local shop by asking if I could pay to put a card advertising reiki in their window.
And haven’t you blown the surprise now?
Well, Carol never reads my blog. She says that she would rather I talked to her in person! But just to be careful I told her she couldn’t read it because I had written about her present. Unfortunately someone mentioned the present in a comment on a different post which I was showing her… oh what tangled webs we weave.
I’ll have to look up reiki. I thought it was a type of Japanese yoghurt. I know people in the country were suspicious of yoghurt back in the sixties but I’m sure it must be quite well-accepted by now, along with garlic and putting wine in cooking. In any case, I don’t think it’s ever been associated with the Devil, so, as I say, I’ll obviously have to look it up.
Hi Jon
Ria from HandsomeDevil here - just to let you know your order of GHD’s has been despatched and should be with you in time for Carols birthday.
Well, I’ve found that it means that I don’t have to talk to B at all anymore. I just post stuff that I want him to know. It’s great.
They arrived yesterday, thanks Ria. They look fantastic, even I’m excited about them and my hair is only 1mm long!
I guess that’s me then…how disappointing that my only appearance on your log is under this guise